It looked like 0-3 Rutgers might finally get out of their rut last Saturday, but the Scarlet Knights fell just one touchdown short of an upset over USC. While the 42-35 loss was disappointing, it proved Rutgers can compete with elite competition. More importantly, the performance showed that this team still has plenty of fight left, especially on its home field. This Saturday, Rutgers welcomes FCS opponent Howard to Piscataway with a chance to end its 3-game losing streak in fashion.
Howard enters the matchup at 1-2, with one of those losses coming against No. 5 Indiana. The Hoosiers dominated from the opening kick, rolling to a 55-0 victory and exposing the sizable gap between Howard and top-tier FBS competition. To the Bison's credit, they continued to compete despite the lopsided score, but the result serves as a valuable measuring stick heading into another difficult road test against a Power Four opponent.
This matchup has the potential to look a lot like Howard's trip to Bloomington. Rutgers is coming off its most encouraging performance of the season and should be highly motivated to take its frustrations out on a Group-of-6 opponent. The Scarlet Knights arguably possess an advantage in talent, depth, size, and athleticism on both sides of the ball, and they'll have the added benefit of playing in front of their home crowd.
With Rutgers desperate for its first win and eager to build momentum, don't expect the Scarlet Knights to take their foot off the gas. Howard struggled to move the ball against Indiana, and a similar challenge awaits against a Rutgers defense that should control the line of scrimmage from start to finish. If the Scarlet Knights bring the same energy and intensity they showed against USC, they have a strong chance to turn this into a blowout and cover the massive 42.5-point spread.
Rutgers vs Howard prediction: Rutgers -42.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number to -125.
